Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D., psychologist, professor at Stanford University, author of Willpower. How to develop and strengthen? (The Willpower Instinct), says that the ability to self-control is the response of the human brain and body to sudden impulses and desires:

“Willpower is a person’s reaction to internal conflict. For example, you are overcome by the desire to smoke another cigarette or eat a larger portion for lunch, but you understand that this cannot be done, and with all your might you resist momentary weakness. Or do you know that you need to go to Gym and pay for the dusty ones coffee table utility bills, but you’d rather be idle.”

It took evolution millions of years to form the prefrontal cortex (the area of ​​the brain located just behind the frontal bone of the skull), which controls absolutely all the processes that distinguish humans from animals. If we assume that the human brain is inherently strong in decision-making and self-control, then how to train self-control and what can be done to improve its “standard equipment”?

For many years it was believed that the structure of the brain was unchanged. However, the results of studies conducted by neuroscientists during last decade, have shown that the brain, like a student thirsty for knowledge, reacts very sensitively to any experience gained: force yourself to solve calculation problems every day - and your brain will become stronger in mathematics; Learn and recite long poems - and you will significantly speed up the processes of memorizing and reproducing information.

For example, adults learning to juggle accumulate gray matter in the parietal lobe of the brain, which is responsible for coordinating movements, and in children playing musical instruments, fine and gross motor skills are much better developed than those of their peers.

Self-control is no exception to the rule. Today, scientists know a huge number of ways to strengthen willpower. Some of you dear readers, now you’re probably thinking about traps with temptations, such as chocolate bars in the dressing room or the minibar near the exercise bike. It is obvious that by resorting to such methods, you can not only develop the ability to self-control, but also strengthen the nervous system. :)

Today we invite you to familiarize yourself with simpler, but no less in effective ways develop willpower, proposed by Kelly McGonigal and other psychologists.

Willpower depletes throughout the day

A characteristic quality of willpower, according to McGonigal, is its limitation, because every successful manifestation of endurance and self-control depletes a person’s energy reserves:

“When we try to control our bad temper or ignore irritating factors, we draw strength from the same resource.”

A series of experiments described by psychologist Roy Baumeister in his book Willpower: Rediscovering greatest power person,” allowed him to put forward an entertaining hypothesis: that self-control is like a muscle: if you don’t give it rest, you will eventually become completely exhausted, like an athlete who has brought himself to exhaustion. Some researchers, including Kelly McGonigal, believe that willpower, just like the human body, can be developed through special training, which will be discussed below.

How to learn self-control and strengthen willpower?

The first step towards self-control is stress management, since their biological basis is completely incompatible. Being under the influence of prolonged nervous tension, a person uses his energy resources irrationally, which negatively affects the functioning of the prefrontal cortex and aggravates the fight-or-flight state. In stressful situations, we act instinctively and make decisions based on immediate conclusions, while self-control requires in-depth consideration and analysis of the current situation.

In this case, how to achieve self-control in stressful situation? When you feel stressed and tired, take a couple of deep breaths and try to distract yourself from your thoughts - this practice, according to McGonigal, will be a great start in the fight against chronic stress.

2. “I can’t” vs. "I don't"

According to a study published in the Journal of Personality Psychology and social psychology(Journal of Personality and Social Psychology), one of the ways to establish self-control and strengthen willpower is self-affirmation. An excellent example is the difference between the impact on a person of using the phrases “I can’t” and “I don’t.”

In the above-mentioned experiment, 120 students were divided into 2 groups, one of which had to refuse a sentence using the phrase “I can’t”, while the second had to say “no” by starting a sentence with the words “I don’t”. For example, “I can’t eat ice cream” or “I don’t eat ice cream.” After completing the study, participants were offered a free treat: a chocolate bar or a muesli and walnut bar. The students, unaware that the experiment had not yet reached its logical conclusion, made a choice and received the desired snack. As a result, 61% of students who answered “I can’t” chose a chocolate bar over a granola bar, while students who answered “I don’t” chose a cereal bar 64% of the time.

"Every time you tell yourself, 'I can't,' you create a loop. feedback(feedback loop) as a reminder of existing restrictions. This phrase once again emphasizes that you are forcing yourself to do something that you don’t like.”

How to gain self-control? The next time you have to give up something, use the wording “I don’t” so as not to remember once again that you can’t do something. :)

3. Healthy sleep

McGonigal notes that chronic sleep deprivation has a profound effect on effective work prefrontal cortex:

“Lack of sleep—even if you sleep less than 6 hours a day—is a stressor on the body, affecting how your body and brain deplete available energy resources. As a result, the prefrontal cortex loses control over other areas nervous system and cannot protect you from stress.”

Fortunately, the psychologist also says that all this is reversible:

“Once a person gets enough sleep, repeat brain scans will no longer show any damage to the prefrontal cortex.”

How to increase self-control with healthy sleep? Professor of psychiatry Dr. Daniel Kripke, who has devoted a number of scientific papers to sleep problems, writes that people who sleep about 7 hours daily work much more productively, feel happier and live longer. :)

4. Meditation (at least 8 weeks)

How to maintain self-control? According to a study conducted by Kelly McGonigal, eight weeks of daily meditation practice led to increased self-awareness in everyday life, improved attention and increased gray matter in the corresponding areas of the brain.

“You don’t have to meditate your whole life—you can see positive changes in brain function after just 8 weeks of practice.”

5. Sports and healthy eating

How to improve self-control and your physical fitness? One more in a great way to develop willpower is sport, and it does not matter at all what degree of load we are talking about - be it a walk fresh air or a full workout in the gym. For the brain, it makes no difference what kind of activity you choose: gardening, yoga, dancing, team sports, swimming or weightlifting - in this case, anything that goes beyond the typical sedentary lifestyle increases your willpower reserve.

The second independent measure that also needs to be taken is a healthy diet:

“It’s best to eat foods that can provide you with long-term energy. Most psychologists and nutritionists advise giving preference to foods that help maintain blood sugar levels at the same level. It will likely take some self-control to start moving in this direction, but any effort you make will improve your brain function.”

Sports and healthy eating not only strengthen willpower, but also have a positive impact on a person’s overall well-being. In particular, during physical activity, the hormone endorphin is released in our body:

“Endorphins minimize discomfort during exercise, block pain and promote feelings of euphoria.”

6. Healthy procrastination

How to train self-control while being lazy? :) In the previously mentioned book “Willpower: Rediscovering Man's Greatest Strength,” Roy Baumeister explains that a person by repeating to himself “not now - later” frees himself from internal torment, especially if we're talking about about trying to get rid of bad habits (for example, eating sweets while watching movies).

Marshmallow Test

Finally, I would like to tell you about one thing exciting experiment, conducted for the first time in 1970 by Stanford University professor and author of the cognitive-affective theory of personality Walter Mischel.

The test is carried out to measure the willpower of children aged 4 to 6 years. The essence of the experiment is as follows: a child is taken into a room with a hidden camera and seated at a table on which lies one marshmallow. The examiner tells the child that he can eat it now or wait a while without touching the treat and receive another marshmallow as a reward.

In the original version of the experiment, out of 653 participants, more than half succumbed to temptation and did not put off the opportunity to eat marshmallows.

Watch the video to see how this happens. :)

The experiment was last conducted in 2012 by psychologists at the University of Rochester.

Did you know that willpower can be trained the same way you train muscles in the gym? In Willpower, Stanford professor Kelly McGonigal talks about how to do this. We have selected 8 effective exercises for you. Shall we start?

Track your volitional decisions

Start by tracking your behavior. Try to mark decisions throughout the day related to your will test. For example, do you go to the gym? Did you bring your sports uniform with you so that you don’t have to return home after work and only then go to the gym? Were you too distracted by a phone call, risking missing your workout?

Analyze the decisions you make throughout the day. Find out which actions were consistent with your goals and which were contrary to them.

Breathe to self-control

Slow your breathing to 4-6 breaths per minute. It's a lot slower than usual, but just practice a few times and you'll get the hang of it.

By slowing your breathing, you activate the prefrontal cortex, which will help shift your brain and body from a state of stress to a mode of self-control.

Within a few minutes you will calm down, gain control of yourself and be able to make informed decisions.

Five-Minute Ecological Willpower Refueling

If you want to quickly refuel with willpower, then go outside. Head to the nearest park or go for a walk with your dog. Call a friend and invite them to go for a walk or go for a run.

Take a break for a couple of minutes and go for a walk.

If you have the desire and a free minute, you can add physical exercise to your walk. It is not necessary to exhaust yourself; a short jog or a brisk walk will be enough.

Forgive yourself when you're wrong

Everyone makes mistakes and mistakes. And often our perception of failure is more important than the failure itself. Therefore, you should not be angry and blame yourself if something did not work out for you. Ask yourself the following questions:

1. What do you feel? What emotions are you experiencing? How difficult is it for you now?
2. Were you worried about something? similar people who do you look up to? If this has already happened to someone, then this will help soften the voice of self-criticism.
3. What would you say to a friend? If this happened to your friend similar situation, how would you cheer him up? Help yourself get back on track.

Get some sleep

As numerous studies show, lack of sleep can be reversed. Of course, this is not the best practice and it will be more beneficial to distribute sleep evenly, but in some cases an exception can be made.

If you've been staying up late and waking up early all week, getting enough sleep over the weekend will strengthen your willpower.

Also, never forget to take a nap during the day. Literally 20-40 minutes of sleep after lunch will bring you back to life and restore your strength and will.

Look into the future

Make every decision and action you make related to your life purpose.

Think about how your behavior will affect your future.

In other words, instead of asking yourself, “Should I grab a cheeseburger and fries today?” - ask yourself: “Do I want to deal with the consequences of eating fast food every day for a whole year?” Don't just think about today and instant gratification!

Take a break for 10 minutes

10 minutes. It is this period that can change our views on pleasure. When the brain compares a delicious dessert that you have to wait 10 minutes for with a more distant reward, like weight loss, the immediate pleasure does not attract it as much.

Make it a rule to always wait 10 minutes before giving in to temptation. If possible, physically distance yourself from the temptation, or at least look away.

If after 10 minutes you still want it, go for it, but before it's up, think about how your life would change if you refused temptation.

The power of pride

Capitalize on the basic human need for approval by imagining yourself soaring when you conquer a challenge of will. To do this, when you make an important decision, share it with your friends on Facebook, Twitter and in person. Recharge yourself with the support of other people!

Training willpower is one of the most difficult activities and at the same time one of the most important. Few people ask the question of how to train willpower, but in vain. Willpower will force you to: regularly go to the gym, read books, give up smoking and sweets, work through your to-do list every day and take steps towards your goal. It is necessary to constantly train willpower; your effectiveness, health and physical fitness depend on it.

What is willpower and how to train willpower?

Will is the ability of a person to make decisions based on the thought process and direct his thoughts and actions in accordance with the decision made. Wikipedia

Willpower - will force you to act after decision taken. Everything we do throughout the day and what we will do tomorrow depends on it. Our future depends on willpower. I think everyone understands the importance of training willpower.

Before moving on to her training, imagine that willpower is a glass of water. If it is complete, then this means that you have enough willpower to achieve your goals. If it is empty, then you have weak willpower. This glass must be filled daily. Each correct solution Adds a few drops of water to the glass. A bad decision drains most of the glass. Sometimes one wrong decision can completely devastate him. Therefore, be careful.

Willpower manifests itself in the following forms:

1. I won't- a person gives up bad habits. It's not just drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. There may be a refusal of sweets, salty, social networks, procrastination, etc. Any action that you did before and now refuse it.

2. I will- this power allows us to force ourselves to do boring things even when our whole body says that it’s time to rest. Thanks to this strength, you continue to take further steps towards your goal.

3. I want- this power allows you to make the right decisions. It is she who stops us from the temptation to eat a sweet bar or lie on the couch. As soon as such thoughts creep into our heads, the power of “I want” determines what is more important for us, being healthy or smoking another cigarette.

3 ways in which you will understand how to train willpower:

1. First you need to give up something minor. This easy way start training willpower. Every day it will become stronger and the glass of water will begin to fill. For example, if you want to lose weight, you don’t need to immediately switch to a healthy diet and run marathons every day. It will be enough to give up cakes and start doing warm-up for 5 minutes a day. When you already feel the willpower to go further, then you should give up flour and add 10 minutes of training after the warm-up. I think you get the point. This is how you train all the “I won’t” forces (giving up sweets), “I want” (taking time to warm up or exercise) and the “I want” strength (by refusing all this, you want to be healthy) at once. .

2. Every day you need to monitor your achievements, no matter whether they are good or bad. You must clearly see what you have achieved. One of the best ways control the implementation of a new habit - put marks on the calendar. Below you can look at my calendar. In it I note an action that relates to the very 20% (Pareto's law) that brings 80% of the result. It is quite difficult to form the habit of such actions; this is clearly reflected in the calendar. The fact that this technique works and allows you not to give up, I am 100% sure of this.

3. Set a goal for yourself. The right goal will be a great source of motivation. What you will do or what you will refuse must be: specific, measurable and simple (for starters). Be sure to check out the article. You will begin to receive colossal results from your activities only at the moment when your brain understands: what to do; when to do it; how to do it.

Common mistakes:

♦ There is no need to give up everything in one day, this will not lead to the desired results and will weaken your willpower further. After all, the probability that something will come of it is 2-3%. But if you give up minor habits, then gradually your willpower will begin to strengthen and after a couple of days or weeks you can give up the following habits or complicate this one.

♦ After missing just one day, you give up and lose motivation. Most people stop making any attempts to continue working on themselves, because I already gave up, I couldn’t do it anymore. This approach is destructive; any habit requires willpower. Any habit requires persistence and repeated attempts to form it.

♦ It is a common belief that it takes 21 days to form a habit; this is true and false at the same time. Yes, indeed, after 15-21 days you stop thinking about why you need this habit and begin to start tasks unconsciously, but there is a big BUT: if you relax for a minute, you will lose this habit.

♦ Set your minimum for force majeure situations. At one time, I formed the habit of running at least 3 kilometers every morning. One day I got sick, and going for a run with a fever would only harm myself even more. BUT, I already had it written down what I was doing in this situation. I got up, got dressed, and went for a walk of at least 3 km. I observed this minimum for 3 days, this allowed me to run on the 4th day, as my health improved, without any problems. Walking in the fresh air will not harm your health.

Summary

5 tips for training willpower, start filling a glass of water.

1. We give up something insignificant (in nutrition), start warming up every morning for 5 minutes. Once you feel the willpower, make it more difficult.

2. You need to buy, print, draw a calendar (should be in the same form as in the example above) - hang it on the refrigerator and mark your habits.

3. Set a goal for yourself, divide the goal into subprojects, subprojects into tasks, tasks into daily actions.

4. Set your daily minimum for habits associated with such forces as “I will” and “I want.”

5. Make a promise to yourself that even if you miss one day, you will not give up the next. This is one of the most common mistakes. The point is that if you miss just one day, most people put off forming habits for several years. Even if you missed a few days, don't give up, start again.

Once you understand how to train willpower, you will get many more benefits:

• Brain function will improve.
• The number will increase internal energy, thanks to which you can complete more tasks every day.
• Hormones such as serotonin, endorphin, adrenaline, and dopamine will begin to be produced. It is these hormones that cause feelings of happiness. The stronger your willpower, the happier you will be.
• Feelings of stress, anxiety, and worries will decrease or disappear altogether.

Be sure to check out the article “, it will be a good addition to the article on how to train willpower and will show how to increase the load when training willpower.

Strength of spirit is the most valuable quality of human character. Without willpower, a person becomes lethargic and apathetic. Firmness and inflexibility can help you win over physical desires. The weaker the willpower, the more difficult it is for a person to resist bad habits and weaknesses.

Overcoming difficulties is the first step towards victory

If you notice any shortcomings in yourself, it is best to start fighting them immediately. Without willpower, a person loses direction in life and tends to choose the wrong path in life. Willpower guides a person and becomes his guiding thread. Without strength of character and fortitude, you can miss your opportunities.

Signs of a strong will in a person

Having a strong, strong-willed character, it is easy to cope with the burden of accumulated problems. Strength of spirit helps to overcome difficulties even in the most unfavorable situations. Thanks to hidden resources, a person is ready to fall and rise again.

Only courage will help you overcome all obstacles. Believing in yourself is an excellent recommendation for those who want to become invulnerable. Patience will develop in you a strong personality, ready to withstand the blows of fate.

What to do if laziness gets in the way

Often sits in us great desire do something, but are stopped by the fear of possible failure. Laziness is born where there is no specific motivation. Indifference and apathy prevent you from taking any concrete steps.

Energy reserves increase if you tend to change areas of activity frequently. For example, your favorite activity can be combined with dancing, painting, and sports training.

Exercises to develop strong-willed qualities

1. Strengthening your fortitude. The point of the exercise is to constantly physical activity. Morning jogging and swimming are suitable for this. Developing the body greatly trains the spirit. If sport becomes a part of your life, a lot will change.

2. Get rid of laziness. If you don't want to do something, you need to force yourself to take the initiative. If you don’t want to exhaust yourself with workouts in the gym, throw away all the “don’ts” and do it! Getting up early in the morning is also a big deal and you need to learn to develop firmness in yourself.

3. Planning things. Give yourself clear instructions on which things need to be given priority attention and what can be left for later. Planning your affairs will save you from a chaotic life schedule.

10. Search for hidden power. Train your skills. If you take something, be sure to put it back in the same place. The next day you will know exactly where it is. You allow yourself to feel the volitional tension. Success and well-being depend on this.

Do what you like correctly and clearly move towards your goal. Exercises to develop willpower require serious preparation. Training strong-willed qualities increases the need to change your usual lifestyle. You need to gather your willpower and force yourself to reconsider some habits. Learn to be demanding of yourself and don't forget to push the buttons and

25.07.2015 09:45

To grow above yourself and become more successful, sometimes you just need to take a few simple steps. Enough...

Willpower is very important, especially in self-improvement. In this article, you will learn about 10 useful exercises that will strengthen your willpower.

But before we move on to the description of willpower training, we need to talk in more detail about why you need to master willpower training methods.

You can find many definitions of willpower in dictionaries, but each of them is unclear and often frightening. But willpower is first and foremost wish. The desire to improve oneself, strengthen oneself mental health, to achieve a certain goal.

Will is always present in life and affects all areas of life. Psychologists distinguish three aspects of influence:

1. Willpower helps to direct a person’s activity on the desired path and does not allow him to deviate from the intended path.
2. Willpower makes a person more active in all aspects of life.
3. Willpower contributes to the development of the ability to overcome difficulties that arise on the way to the final goal.

Willpower promotes self-development and success. Trained willpower helps to develop the following qualities:

• Determination;
• Independence;
• Determination;
• Self-control;
• Excerpt;
• Persistence;
• Discipline
• Courage;
• Courage.

Each of us can have these qualities to one degree or another, but in order to bring everyone together we need to start training willpower, learn to motivate ourselves and develop our personality.

All over the world, psychologists are developing techniques aimed at training willpower. There are seminars and master classes where self-improvement skills are demonstrated. In this article you will learn about 10 simple exercises that will help train and strengthen willpower.

10 exercises to train your will

• Let's say NO to bad habits. Analyze all your habits and make a list of those habits that you need to get rid of. And start getting rid of them gradually, first from one, then from the other. To maximize the effect and make it easier for you, start with the easiest one (for example, if you decide to stop drinking caffeine, you can first drink chicory and gradually switch to tea). For efficiency, you can come up with a system of fines that will significantly hit you if you fail.
• Test by temptation. This is a difficult exercise, but very effective. If you decide to give up chocolate, always keep a small chocolate bar on hand. But you cannot eat it under any circumstances. This exercise is aimed at strengthening willpower.
• Switching attention. The essence of the exercise is that as soon as you feel a craving for the forbidden, you need to switch your attention to another thing. For example, when you want chocolate, you can make a couple physical exercise or read a book. Just switch your attention to other things.
• New habits. When giving up old and bad habits, you must develop new and good habits. Instead of a cup of coffee in the morning, exercise. Instead of junk food - vegetables and fish. And everything else that comes to mind. The main thing is to repeat these things until they become a habit. Scientists have proven that it takes 21 days to develop a new habit.
• Charity. American scientists have come to the conclusion that by giving something of our own to charity - money, things, food, time - we train willpower. Good and kind deeds done for someone provide an incentive for development and protect them from wrong actions.
• Tense muscles. At the moment when you want to return to a bad habit, you need to tense your muscles (clench your fists, tense your abs, etc.). This helps you to distract yourself and find the strength to switch your attention to something else. It has already been proven that muscle tension directly affects the activation of willpower.
• Healthy lifestyle. We have already found out that willpower is aimed at self-improvement of the individual. Therefore, it is very important to start leading healthy image life, but it doesn’t have to be taken to the point of fanaticism. Just give up fatty foods and add vegetables to your diet. Visit the gym at least once a week. Start to harden up. Hardening has a positive effect on the entire body and activates willpower.
• Control of emotions. To train willpower, you need to learn to control your emotions, especially when communicating with others. You need to learn to move from an emotional discussion almost instantly to a calm and measured one. This is a complex exercise and you will need some kind of thing or note that will remind you of control.
• Let's say NO to laziness! It is very important to get rid of this quality. As soon as the desire arises to put something off until later, you need to immediately go and do it. If you don’t want to clean the house, you have to go and clean it; if you don’t want to wash the dishes, go and wash them. And so it is in everything. This exercise is the most effective for training willpower. In addition, by forcing yourself to do unpleasant things right away, you will save a lot of time and increase your productivity.
• Strict sleep schedule. Healthy and deep sleep strengthens the body, gives strength to fight bad habits and strengthen willpower. You should always go to bed and get up at the same time and sleep at least 7-8 hours.

By doing these exercises, you will train your willpower and many things will begin to come to you easily and naturally. The main thing on the way to your goal is NEVER to give up. If something doesn't work out, immediately try it again. Only then will you become a person about whom they will say: “a man with an iron will.”